Friday, May 09, 2008

Good for what ails you! 2

THE rising number of reported hand, foot and mouth disease cases shows that stepped-up hygiene standards and checks on the young charges are not enough to arrest the crisis.

One way that can help tackle the problem is to be mindful of children's water intake. I am not advocating just drinking lots of water. Water intake should be more specific, in proportion to the child's body weight. The key is to drink it in sufficient quantity and regularity.

The rule of thumb is: Drink at least one ounce of water for every two pounds of the child's body weight. The metric equivalent is: 31.42ml of water for every 1kg of the child's weight. In addition, mix 6/100 (0.06) teaspoon of sea salt (do not use table salt) into every 314.2 ml of water.

For thousands of years, doctors have successfully treated their patients with nothing more than plain water and natural salt. Water and natural salt, when combined together, give you everything your body and mind need.

Soong See Choo angry doc certainly didn't know that "[f]or thousands of years, doctors have successfully treated their patients with nothing more than plain water and natural salt", or that "[w]ater and natural salt, when combined together, give you everything your body and mind need".Why didn't they just tell me that on the first day of medical school and just let me go on an extended vacation for the remainder of the five years?Of course, Mr Soong didn't just come up with the figures of 1 ounce per pound per day off the top of his head; if you google around a little you will find where he got his formula and beliefs from.It's not surprising that a layman like Mr Soong will come across unsubstantiated claims of a miracle cure and believe them. What is surprising and unacceptable to angry doc is the way a national newspaper periodically prints letters from advocates for unproven forms of therapy without fact-checking. The lack of editorial vigour is just irresponsible.

9 Comments:

Here's a sobering article on the veracity of the health claims:

http://www.quackwatch.org/11Ind/batman.html

"It's not surprising that a layman like Mr Soong will come across unsubstantiated claims of a miracle cure and believe it. What is surprising and unacceptable to angry doc is the way a national newspaper periodically prints letters from advocates for unproven forms of therapy without fact-checking. The lack of editorial vigour is just irresponsible."

Indeed, and in the context of infectious disease, this sort of nonsense can be very dangerous.

I think it is important that such claims, when made in a public forum, does not go unchallenged.

Mr Soong pobably means well, but there is a danger that when this current HFMD epidemic has run its course that he and others who take up his suggestion will be reinforced in the belief that salt-water is indeed responsible for curing HFMD.

Since when did A journalist or a forum writer qualify as a doctor. Yes saline can prevent dehydration and even save shock victim when introduced intravenously.But Prevent HFMD????And he did not even validate his data with a actual doctor. Or is it no doctor would have agreed to endorsing that claim......And they(SPH) say Bloggers have no credibility.

$100,000 if I I can't prove that the free "water cure" is far superior to anything orthodox medicine has to offer! This man, another layman, Bob Butts really put his money where his mouth is, or else he is just insane to offer to the public this $100,000.

but then again who in Singapore have this courage to prove him wrong on his "water cure" and reap his $100,000?

http://www.watercure2.org/reward.htm

nothing compares to personal first hand experience on any "therapy" , be it from the expert or grandmother medicine chest/kitchen.